Sweat Absorber and Headwear Using the Same

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a sweat absorber and headwear using the sweat absorber. The sweat absorber is formed by a porous panel including a first layer that is knitted in a warp direction to have a plurality of first porous structures, a second layer that is knitted in a warp direction to have a plurality of second porous structures, and a plurality of connecting yarns for connecting the first layer and the second layer. The porous panel may be a double raschel fabric panel. 
     The sweat absorber may semi-permanently maintain a shape of a crown portion of a headwear and may be prevented from being contaminated from sweat. In addition, a contaminated part may be replaced.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

(a) Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a sweat absorber and headwear using thesweat absorber. More particularly, the present invention relates to asweat absorber formed by a porous multi-layered fabric panel (e.g.,double raschel fabric) to increase ventilation, sweat evaporation, shaperecovery, and wearing comfort properties, and headwear including thesweat absorber.

(b) Description of the Related Art

Generally, headwear (e.g., a cap, a hat, a visor, etc.) includes a crownportion for being worn on a head of a wearer, and a visor portion formedentirely or partially at an interior circumference of a bottom side ofthe crown portion. Such headwear may include a sweat absorber combinedthereto at its lower interior.

The sweat absorber is formed in a band shape provided along an interiorcircumference of the bottom side of the crown portion. The sweatabsorber absorbs sweat from a head or forehead of a wearer, such thatthe headwear may maintain its comfort. In addition, the sweat absorberprevents a wearer from being directly touched by seams of the crownportion or the visor portion, and the headwear may not be easilyremoved.

Accordingly, the sweat absorber closely contacts the wearer.

Generally, the sweat absorber includes an inner panel, and a coveringportion surrounding the inner panel. Headwear having the crown portionthat is not elastic or headwear having a size controller for controllinga head circumference of the crown portion uses weaved or knitted fabricas the covering portion, and uses sponge or non-woven fabric as theinner panel to absorb sweat and provide a cushion function.

In the elastic head wear without the size controller, the sweat absorberis formed of a slim elastic band, or the covering portion formed by theelastic weaved or knitted fabric panel is sewed to the elastic bandcircumference to form the sweat absorber.

However, when the sweat absorber is formed by the elastic band oroverlapping double or triple fabric panels, there are problems in thatuncomfortable pressure is applied to the wearer and the temperaturewhere the sweat absorber touches skins of the wearer increases.

In addition, when the headwear is worn for a long time, the sweatabsorber may loose elasticity, its shape may be varied, and the headwearmay be easily removed.

Further, sweat stays in the sweat absorber so that the sweat absorbermay be easily contaminated.

The above information disclosed in this Background section is only forenhancement of understanding of the background of the invention andtherefore it may contain information that does not form the prior artthat is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill inthe art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been made in an effort to provide a sweatabsorber having great elasticity so that a shape of a crown portion issemi-permanently maintained, and headwear using the sweat absorber.

In addition, the present invention has been made in an effort to providea sweat absorber having great ventilation so that the sweat absorber isnot easily contaminated, and headwear using the sweat absorber.

Further, the present invention has been made in an effort to provide asweat absorber having great elasticity, efficient absorption of sweat,and efficient evaporation of the sweat, and headwear using the sweatabsorber.

Still further, the present invention has been made in an effort toprovide a sweat absorber that may be replaced when the sweat absorber iscontaminated, and headwear using the sweat absorber.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, headwearincludes a crown portion, a visor portion, and a sweat absorber. Thecrown portion is worn on a head of a wearer, the visor portion iscombined to the crown portion, and the sweat absorber is combined to alower part of an inner surface of the crown portion. The sweat absorberis formed by a porous panel including a first porous layer that isknitted in a warp direction, a second porous layer that is knitted in awarp direction and a plurality of connecting yarns for connecting thefirst layer and the second layer. The porous panel may be a doubleraschel fabric panel.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view representing headwear using a sweatabsorber according to a first exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view representing the sweat absorber accordingto the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 a and FIG. 3 b are cross-sectional views along a line of III-IIIshown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a graph comparing pressures between headwear using the sweatabsorber according to the first exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention and headwear using the conventional sweat absorber.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view representing headwear using a sweatabsorber according to a second exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

In the following detailed description, only certain exemplaryembodiments of the present invention have been shown and described,simply by way of illustration.

Throughout the specification, a sweat absorber is applied to elasticheadwear without a head circumference controller, but it is not limitedthereto.

For example, a sweat absorber according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention may be applied to all types of headwear includingset size headwear having a crown portion, headwear having a sizecontroller for controlling a head circumference, and elastic headwear,and it may be applied to a baseball cap having a visor portion and avisor having a visor portion and a sweat absorber.

When the sweat absorber according to the exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention is applied to the elastic headwear, extensible yarnmay be used to enhance elasticity of the sweat absorber.

In addition, yarn disposed in a height direction (Y axis direction) isdefined as a “weft”, and yarn disposed in a length direction (X axisdirection) is defined as a “warp”, but they are not limited thereto. Forexample, the yarn disposed in the height direction may be defined as the“warp”, and the yarn disposed in the length direction may be defined asthe “weft”.

A sweat absorber according to a first exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention and headgear using the sweat absorber will now bedescribed with reference to FIG. 1 to FIG. 4.

Headwear 100 according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention includes a crown portion 130 for being worn on a head of thewearer, a visor portion 150 extending from the crown portion 130, andsweat absorber 170 disposed on a lower part of an inner surface of thecrown portion 130. The sweat absorber 170 may be provided to the entirearea of the lower part of the inner surface of the crown portion 130, orit may be provided to the lower part of the inner surface of the crownportion 130 except for a front part where the visor portion 150 iscombined thereto.

The sweat absorber 170 according to the exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention is formed to efficiently absorb sweat flowing from ahead or a forehead of the wearer, efficiently evaporate the sweat,ventilate air, and maintain the shape of the crown portion.

Accordingly, the sweat absorber 170 according to the first exemplaryembodiment of the present invention is formed by using a porous panelwithout using an additional covering portion.

The porous panel 17 is formed in a multi-layered configuration so thatthe headwear does not slip and does not impart uncomfortable pressure.That is, the porous panel 17 includes a first layer 171 that is knittedin a warp direction by a raschel knitting device to have a plurality offirst porous structures 171 a, a second layer 173 that is knitted in awarp direction by the raschel knitting device to have a plurality ofsecond porous structures 173 a, and a plurality of connecting yarns 175for connecting the first layer 171 and the second layer 173 (in a Z-axisdirection). Herein the porous structures may include many pores or othersmall spaces or interstices or vessels or holes that can hold a gas orliquid or allow it to pass through.

The multi-layered configuration may be formed in a honeycombed shape orin a cube shape.

In this case, the first porous structure 171 a may be the same size asthe second porous structure 173 a, and as shown in FIG. 2, and the sizeof the first porous structure 171 a may be greater than that of thesecond porous structure 173 a.

When the size of the first porous structure 171 a is greater than thatof the second porous structure 173 a, the second layer 173 may bedisposed on an inner surface of the sweat absorber 170 to provide acomport feeling and the first layer 171 is disposed on an outer surfaceof the sweat absorber 170 to quickly absorb and evaporate sweat.

The plurality of first porous structures 171 a and the plurality ofsecond porous structures 173 a are sequentially formed in a honeycombedshape, in a cube shape, or in a flower shape.

The porous panel 17 may be formed in a double raschel texture of onefabric panel in which a front surface (a first layer), a connecting yarn(an connecting yarn), and a rear surface (a second layer) aresimultaneously knitted in an initial knitting step.

In this case, the connecting yarn is formed in a monofilament bundle inwhich the front and rear surfaces are alternately and vertically weaved,and therefore elastic strength may be provided.

The elastic strength may be adjusted according to a thickness of theconnecting yarn, and cushion strength may be adjusted according to alength of the connecting yarn.

In the above configuration, problems in which sweat is absorbed by asponge or a non-woven fabric of a conventional sweat absorber and isunpleasantly evaporated and the sponge or the non-woven fabric iscontaminated by the sweat may be easily solved.

That is, in the double raschel texture, the sweat is quickly evaporatedthrough an empty space between the connecting yarns of the front andrear surfaces, and therefore the wearer may feel comfort.

In addition, the connecting yarn is formed of a monofilament yarn inwhich polyester is used and a polyurethane yarn at 0 to 20% is mixedaccording to its elasticity, poly 75 d/36 f or 75 d/72 f is used foryarns of the front and rear surfaces, and poly 20 d/1 f is used for ayarn for a middle cushion function, and therefore elasticity may befurther provided.

In addition, the connecting yarn 175 may be integrally formed when onefabric panel is knitted, or a first connecting yarn 175 a connected tothe first layer 171 and a second connecting yarn 175 b connected to thesecond layer 173 may be combined to form the connecting yarn 175. Thatis, the first and second connecting yarns 175 a and 175 b may furtherinclude male and female combining portions 175 aa and 175 bb.

When the first connecting yarn 175 a connected to the first layer 171and the second connecting yarn 175 b of the second layer 173 arecombined, tension of a part of the first connecting yarn 175 a or thesecond connecting yarn 175 b that touches a forehead is increased tosemi-permanently maintain its elasticity and shape.

In addition, the first layer 171 or the second layer 173 may beseparated and replaced.

Accordingly, when the sweat absorber is partially contaminated, or theelasticity of the sweat absorber is deteriorated, at least one of thefirst and second layers 171 and 173 may be separated and replaced.

Although the connecting yarns 175 is formed of a mono filament yarn suchas polyester or nylon to have a predetermined tension, the connectingyarns 175 are knitted or weaved to have a deformable porous structure.Accordingly the crown portion expands when the sweat absorber 170 isplaced over the head and is recovered to its original shape when theheadwear is removed from the head, so that the shape of the crownportion may be maintained.

In addition, since the plurality of connecting yarns 175 expand at apart receiving pressure and are recovered to the original shape at apart where the pressure is not applied, the headwear may not be easilyremoved, and the shape of the headwear is appropriately formed.

FIG. 4 is a graph comparing pressures between the headwear using thesweat absorber according to the first exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention and the headwear using the conventional sweatabsorber.

In FIG. 4, a load (gf) according a head size is measured while headwearof 52 cm are put on a measuring unit.

When the load according to the head size increases, the pressureincreases.

As shown in FIG. 4, the pressure of the headwear using the sweatabsorber according to the exemplary embodiment of the present inventionis less than that of the headwear using the conventional sweat absorber.

In addition, the sweat absorber may be prevented from being contaminatedsince the sweat absorbed by the sweat absorber is quickly evaporatedthrough the porous structure.

Further, a protrusion portion 177 is formed of a material such assynthetic resin, synthetic rubber, natural rubber, and urethane on thefirst layer 171 and the second layer 173 to prevent the connecting yarn175 from being damaged by excessive tension when the headwear is wornand removed. In this case, the protrusion portion 177 is protruded fromthe first layer 171 to the second layer 173 or from the second layer 173to the first layer 171.

Headwear 100′ using a sweat absorber according to a second exemplaryembodiment of the present invention will now be described with referenceto FIG. 5.

A sweat absorber according to the second exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention includes the porous panel 17 used as an inner paneland disposed in a band shape, a covering portion 18 covering the porouspanel 17, and one or more lines of sewn portions 181 that are sewn in awidth direction.

When the headwear is the elastic headwear, the sewn portion 181 isformed of yarn.

The covering portion is formed of one of cotton, polyester, nylon, wool,and acryl, or texture formed by a combination of 70 to 98% thereof andpolyurethane of 2%˜30%

A sweat absorber 170′ is formed in a multi-layered configuration so thatthe headwear does not slip and does not impart uncomfortable pressure.That is, the porous panel 17 includes a first layer that is knitted in awarp direction by a raschel knitting device to have a plurality of firstporous structures, a second layer that is knitted in a warp direction bythe raschel knitting device to have a plurality of second porousstructures, and a plurality of connecting yarns for connecting the firstlayer and the second layer (in a Z-axis direction shown in FIG. 2),which are the same as the sweat absorber according to the firstexemplary embodiment of the present invention, and therefore detaileddescriptions thereof will be omitted.

According to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a sweatabsorber may semi-permanently maintain a shape of a crown portion of aheadwear and may be prevented from being contaminated from sweat. Inaddition, a contaminated part may be replaced.

Further, elasticity may be semi-permanently maintained, sweat may beefficiently absorbed and evaporated, and a shape of a crown portion maybe maintained according to a shape of a head of a wearer.

While this invention has been described in connection with what ispresently considered to be practical exemplary embodiments, it is to beunderstood that the invention is not limited to the disclosedembodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover variousmodifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit andscope of the appended claims.

1. Headwear comprising: a crown portion for being worn on a head of a wearer; a visor portion combined to the crown portion; and a sweat absorber combined to a lower part of an inner surface of the crown portion, wherein the sweat absorber is formed by a porous panel including a first layer that is knitted in a warp direction to have a plurality of first porous structures, a second layer that is knitted in a warp direction to have a plurality of second porous structures, and a plurality of connecting yarns for connecting the first layer and the second layer.
 2. The headwear of claim 1, wherein the porous panel is a double raschel fabric panel.
 3. The headwear of claim 2, wherein a monofilament yarn in which polyester is used as the connecting yarn in the double raschel fabric panel.
 4. The headwear of claim 2, wherein the porous panel of the sweat absorber comprises a covering portion for efficiently absorbing sweat.
 5. The headwear of claim 1, wherein the covering portion is formed one of cotton, polyester, nylon, wool, and acryl, or texture formed by a combination of 70 to 98% thereof and polyurethane at 2% to 30%.
 6. The headwear of claim 1, wherein the connecting yarn is integrally knitted with the first and second layers, and elasticity of the porous panel is determined according to a width and a length of the connecting yarn weaved or knitted.
 7. The headwear of claim 1, wherein the connecting yarn includes a first connecting yarn connected to the first layer and a second connecting yarn connected to the second layer.
 8. The headwear of claim 7, wherein tension of a part of the first connecting yarn or the second connecting yarn that touches a forehead is formed to be greater.
 9. The headwear of claim 7, wherein the first connecting yarn and the second connecting yarn comprise male and female members so that at least one of the first and second layers may be replaced.
 10. The headwear of claim 1, further comprising at least one protrusion portion that is protruded from the first layer to the second layer or from the second layer to the first layer, and that has a width and tension that are greater than the connecting yarn.
 11. A sweat absorber formed by a porous panel including a first layer that is knitted in a warp direction to have a plurality of first porous structures, a second layer that is knitted in a warp direction to have a plurality of second porous structures, and a plurality of connecting yarns for connecting the first layer and the second layer.
 12. The sweat absorber of claim 11, wherein the porous panel is a double raschel fabric panel.
 13. The sweat absorber of claim 11, further comprising a covering portion formed of one of cotton, polyester, nylon, wool, and acryl, or texture formed by a combination of 70 to 98% thereof and polyurethane at 2% to 30%.
 14. The sweat absorber of claim 11, wherein a first porous structure of the first layer is larger than a second porous structure of the second layer, the first porous structures of the first layer are sequentially connected, and the second porous structures of the second layer are non-sequentially connected.
 15. The sweat absorber of claim 11, wherein the connecting yarn is integrally knitted with the first and second layers, and elasticity of the porous panel is determined according to a width and a length of the connecting yarn weaved or knitted.
 16. The sweat absorber of claim 11, wherein the connecting yarn includes a first connecting yarn connected to the first layer and a second connecting yarn connected to the second layer.
 17. The sweat absorber of claim 11, wherein tension of a part of the first connecting yarn or the second connecting yarn that touches a forehead is formed to be greater.
 18. The sweat absorber of claim 16, wherein the first connecting yarn and the second connecting yarn comprise male and female members so that at least one of the first and second layers may be replaced.
 19. The sweat absorber of claim 11, further comprising at least one protrusion portion that is protruded from the first layer to the second layer or from the second layer to the first layer, and that has a width and tension that are greater than the connecting yarn. 